The latest press material about the IGW 2008 is available online (www.gruenewoche.com / Press Info) and may be used free of charge and for research purposes:
· Brief reports on the day’s events
· Press releases on all the main themes of the IGW
· Latest press photos and over 100 historic images
· Radio items and original recordings
· Footage for TV and online editorial departments
· Current overview of the day’s events for the press
· Press contacts at the Green Week
Contents
Seehofer welcomes fellow ministers during opening tour 1
Opening ceremonies with pop on the alpenhorn. 2
EU Commissioner Fischer Boel: Health check for the Common Agricultural Policy. 2
Bio Market: Greater contribution to growth from domestic farmers. 3
Agricultural industry association criticises EU pesticide policy. 3
Food prices continue to rise. 4
Austria: Health check and transparency are vital issues. 4
Switzerland: Come on, let’s go. 4
Seehofer welcomes fellow ministers during opening tour
This morning numerous camera teams as well as print and radio journalists from Germany and abroad accompanied the opening tour of the International Green Week 2008. Germany’s Federal Minister of Agriculture Horst Seehofer, Berlin's Governing Mayor Klaus Wowereit, the President of the German Farmers’ Association Gerd Sonnleitner and the Chairman of the German Food Industry Association Jrgen Abraham, accompanied by the CEO and COO of Messe Berlin, Raimund Hosch and Dr. Christian Gke, inspected the stands, where they met many high ranking figures.
Seehofer was warmly welcomed by his opposite numbers from the Netherlands (Gerda Verburg), Switzerland (Doris Leuthard), Lithuania (Kazimira Danut Prunskien) and Finland (Sirkka-Liisa Anttila ). To the sound of music the visitors were received by the ministers of agriculture of Romania (Dacian Ciolos), Estonia (Helir-Valdor Seeder), Bulgaria (Nihat Kabil) and, for the first time, by Ismat Abasov, representing the Republic of Azerbaijan. Among those offering local specialities were the Norwegian Minister of Agriculture Terje Riis Johansen, and his colleagues from Latvia, (Martin Roze), Armenia (Davit Lokyan) and the Ukraine (Juriy Melnyk). The delegation was also welcomed by the ministers of agriculture of Poland (Robert Pilat) and the Czech Republic (Petr Gandalovic). The visitors enjoyed specialities from France and Hungary presented by Jean-Louis Buer and Zoltn Ggs, the director general and under-secretaries of their respective countries’ agriculture ministries. In the crowded Russian hall Seehofer, Wowereit, Sonnleitner und Hosch were welcomed by the Russian Minister of Agriculture Aleksey Gordeyev and Rafael Ibragimovitsch Baydavletov, Prime Minister of the Republic of Baschkortostan, who invited the delegation into one of the region’s typical yurts.
Opening ceremonies with pop on the alpenhorn
Proof that the alpenhorn is not only used in folk music but also has a place on the pop scene was provided by Eliana Burki and her Band at the popular programme presented by the partner country Switzerland, while the children Heidi and Peter introduced the opening ceremonies of the International Green Week. Over 100,000 different specialities from every continent are on show for the next ten days, making the Green Week the world’s largest display for gourmands, according to the Chief Executive Officer of Messe Berlin GmbH, Raimund Hosch. Federal Councillor Doris Leuthard informed the 5,000 surprised guests that Switzerland not only produces some famous cheeses but also has rice growers and tea planters, as well as Europe’s highest vineyard. The Swiss vision of a multifunctional, sustainable food industry and agriculture is the only convincing response to current challenges, the politician pointed out. Gerd Sonnleitner, President of the German Farmers’ Association, referred to a "long term shift in trends" on the world’s agricultural markets. "The right investments are again being made, the number of people in training has increased, and we are looking for qualified specialists and managers". Germany’s Federal Minister for Food, Agriculture and Consumer Protection, Horst Seehofer, called upon Europe’s policymakers to continue to provide "reliable conditions" for farmers and to simplify bureaucratic procedures, so that farmers can continue to work the land and not be confined to offices. Farmers "are also indispensable in our modern society" said EU Commissioner Mariann Fischer Boel. And Berlin’s Governing Mayor Klaus Wowereit emphasised that "we want people all over the world to have access to healthy food", but consumers must be prepared to "pay a reasonable price for it".
(Contact: Wolfgang Rogall,telephone: +49-(0)-30-30382218, e-mail: rogall@messe-berlin.de)
EU Commissioner Fischer Boel: Health check for the Common Agricultural Policy
The several days spent at the International Green Week at the beginning of the year have become a tradition, said the EU Commissioner for Agriculture and Rural Development. In 2008 one of the main priorities is the so-called Health Check for the Common Agricultural Policy. The intention is not to reinvent the CAP but to make the existing arrangements simpler and more efficient, adapting them to meet new challenges. The main focus is on simplifying the single farm payment arrangements, on adapting the market support instruments and on coping with challenges such as those presented by climate change, sustainable water management and crises in the market resulting from the weather. According to the Commissioner, other important aspects to be addressed during the coming year concern the measures to be adopted to deal with rising food prices, and the gradual opening up of the milk quota system, which will come to an end in 2015. In this respect solutions must be found for the more disadvantaged regions, for example in mountainous areas.
On 17 January the Supervisory Board of the Central Marketing Company of German Agriculture agreed on a major re-organisation. There was unanimous approval for the management’s comprehensive concept under its new General Manager Markus Kraus. A package of reforms has been drawn up consisting of "10 building blocks for the future". These include expanding market research in order to investigate future trends, strengthening the position of farmers as entrepreneurs, and transforming the CMA into a more transparent undertaking. The objective is to capture new export markets, and to achieve this companies are to be provided with a differentiated range of packages for developing these markets. There are also plans to highlight the quality of German foods and to develop a brand promoting the national origin of such products. As Kraus pointed out, the aim is to achieve "maximum efficiency and effectiveness". It is hoped to boost sales by the industry from the current level of some 160 billion euros to 200 billion, according to the Chairman of the Supervisory Board, Werner Hilse. As the "icing on the cake", following successful implementation of the package of reforms, a new name will be sought for the CMA which, Kraus hopes, will provide a clear indication of "what we are engaged in on a daily basis".
Bio Market: Greater contribution to growth from domestic farmers
The organic farming organisation Bund kologische Lebensmittelwirtschaft (BLW) estimates that sales on the German organic foods market amounted to some 5.5.billion euros in 2007, which corresponds to a 15 per cent rise. Increasing numbers of consumers are buying organic, not least of all because more and more supermarkets are stocking such produce and the price gap between organically and conventionally produced items is narrowing. However, German farmers are not getting the full benefit of this development. Around one third of all organically produced foodstuffs have to be imported because the domestic range has failed to keep pace with demand. This applies in particular to fruit and vegetables, as well as to milk and a number of cereals. One reason for this situation is the lack of incentives for converting to organic cultivation, according to the Chairman of the BLW, Felix Prinz zu Lwenstein. For example, in 2005 many of Germany’s federal states withdrew the necessary funding. Speaking at the International Green Week, Prinz zu Lwenstein called upon the federal states to take the wishes of German consumers seriously and to make the most of the statutory framework that is available for encouraging organic cultivation.
(Bund kologische Lebensmittelwirtschaft, contact: Alexander Gerber, telephone: +49-(0)-30-28482300, mobile: +49-(0)-176-24050949)
Agricultural industry association criticises EU pesticide policy
The revisions to the EU Pesticide Regulation that are currently under discussion in Brussels are a threat to the successful control of diseases and pests in arable farming. This was stated by the President of the industry association Industrieverband Agrar (IVA), Hans Theo Jachmann, in a meeting with the press during the International Green Week. If the new licensing philosophy is implemented it could result in up to two thirds of the current active ingredients being withdrawn from the market, and in the case of insecticides the figure could be as high as 90 per cent. This will heighten the risk of a build-up of resistance, with reductions in yields and quality as a consequence. Three European companies, Bayer, Syngenta and BASF, currently account for more than half of the worldwide market for pesticides, and approximately ten per cent of their turnover is invested in research. The development of a new pesticide takes some ten years and costs 200 million euros, and over 100,000 substances have to be investigated, Jachmann explained. The restrictive policy adopted by the EU threatens Europe’s position as a research location, where 70 per cent of all the world’s investment in pesticide research and development takes place, to the benefit of farmers around the world.
The era of rock bottom food prices is over. In future consumers will also have to accustom themselves to rising food prices. Although the rates of increase will not match those of the past two years, a "stabilisation at a high level" can certainly be expected. These details were given to the press by Prof. Harald von Witzke of Berlin’s Humboldt University during the International Green Week. The reasons that he gave included the demand by a rising world population for foodstuffs and the fact that eating habits are changing in emerging countries such as India and China, due to the fact that growing numbers of people can afford to eat better. The third reason is the pace at which the production of bio-energy is increasing. Land that is now being devoted to growing the necessary raw materials is consequently not available for food production. Unless primeval forests are felled, with a concomitant effect on the world's climate, the area under cultivation can only be expanded by about five per cent (some 80 million hectares). In particular productivity on the areas already under cultivation must therefore be increased in order to meet growing demand.
Austria: Health check and transparency are vital issues
For agriculture in Austria 2007 was an important year and a good one as well, according to Reinhard Mang, Secretary General at the Austrian Ministry of Agriculture, who was speaking to the press on the first day at the Green Week. The Green Pact that was approved by the European Commission at the end of October 2007 will provide Austrian farmers with some 7.8 billion euros for the period 2007 to 2013. Before Christmas 2007 Austria had already made the first payments, one of the first EU countries to do so. This year the main agricultural policy issues for the Secretary General will be the health check, the transparency of aid for agriculture, food prices, genetic engineering and renewable energy sources. Referring to the health check, Mang emphasised: "It is important for us that our model remains an effective one." There should be uniform, European-wide clarity about the disclosure of agricultural assistance payments. Food prices rose by 4.1 per cent in 2007 but, as Mang pointed out, farmers are not the ones who are forcing up prices, Rising food prices have a number of causes, among them the poor harvests in many parts of the world, greater demand for food in Asia, higher wage and energy costs, and increased livestock feed costs.
Switzerland: Come on, let’s go
Switzerland is the partner country at this year’s Green Week and its tenth combined display at this event features a new stand concept. This evidently delighted Federal Councillor Doris Leuthard when she spoke with the press shortly before the start of the trade show. She drew attention to the diversity of products on display, and to their quality. With information and samples the exhibitors want to ensure that visitors develop an appetite for Swiss food products. These include chocolate from the cantons of Fribourg, Bern and Aargau, the famous "Tte de Moine" cheese from the cantons of Jura and Bern, original Swiss raclette, wine from Waadtland, Ticino and Wallis, and many other different varieties of cheese too. "We want to ensure that there is a distinctive Swiss presence at the Green Week Berlin 2008 and that people in other countries develop a liking for high quality Swiss foodstuffs", said Urs Schneider, Deputy Director of the Swiss Farmers’ Association. "Our objective is to make sure that visitors leave our stand with this impression: Switzerland is an inviting country with a wealth of outstanding specialities, and well worth a visit. Come on, let’s go".
This press release, press photos of the Green Week and the times of the day’s events for the press can also be found on the internet at www.gruenewoche.com
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